


Tales from Berk

by vannahfanfics



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Hiccup misses Toothless, Hurt and comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Oneshot, POST-HTTYD3, Post-Canon, Reminiscing, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:22:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25450834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vannahfanfics/pseuds/vannahfanfics
Summary: A collection of oneshots from How to Train Your Dragon.DISCLAIMER: I do not own the rights to the characters presented in these stories. Those rights belong to their original creators.
Relationships: Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III/Astrid Hofferson
Comments: 3
Kudos: 25





	1. Foreword

Hello everyone! Welcome to my oneshot collection for How to Train Your Dragon, _Tales from Berk!_ It includes a variety of stories, from passionate romances to tales of friendship, and I hope everyone enjoys reading them as much as I enjoy writing them. If you have migrated here from _Cuddle Corner,_ thank you for sticking with me; if you are new, welcome and enjoy what I have here! In either case, happy reading!

I do take prompts/pairing and story requests (in fact, I love them, so please feel free to request!). However, there are a couple of guidelines to keep in mind:

  * If a prompt is submitted, I **do not** guarantee that I will agree to write it. If I feel uncomfortable at the prompt or otherwise feel like I do not possess enough information to adequately complete the prompt, it is my right to politely refuse to take the prompt. If the prompt is from a series that I have not read/seen, it is likely that I will place the prompt on hold until I have done so. If the prompt is from an anime filler arc, I may refuse or require a short explanation of the filler arc to provide me with enough detail to complete the prompt. Please respect my choice as an author to refuse prompts. 
  * Please do not comment with ship hate. I do not tolerate ship discrimination here (within reason, citing the rules below); it is a sure-fire way to earn yourself a block. I am a multi-shipper and don't care about petty ship wars, so it's really quite rude to come on here bleating that I am "delusional" for writing non-canon ships for fun. _Don't do it._ I write your ship too, I promise. Let others enjoy their ships. 
  * Most of the stories I write are male/female, mostly because this is what I am comfortable writing. However, if you wish to suggest a female/female or male/male prompt, please feel free to do so. I don't discriminate against such pairings and will most likely write them if requested, it is just unlikely that I will do so spontaneously. Again, please respect my decision as the author to refuse to write a pairing if I cannot draw appropriate inspiration.
  * Finally, this is _not_ a place for smut. I respect people who read and/or write it, but I am not one of those people, so please do not request anything that is NSFW. Incest and pedophilia are also prohibited. Other than NSFW, there are two other things to keep I mind. _I do not romanticize cheating_. So if I feel your request involves something of this nature, I will politely refuse. I have been hassled about this before, so please don’t press me on it. Secondly, _I am sensitive about large age gaps between characters_. These will be taken on a case-by-case basis and depends on the age of the characters as well as their relationship. I am particularly iffy concerning student-teacher relationships, and those will most likely be refused. Of course, everyone is entitled to their preferences and I will never harass you or judge you if you request something of this nature. All I ask is that if I refuse, you take is gracefully, and don’t get upset if I happen to write another pairing with an age gap because the circumstances are most likely radically different. I promise you that I have my reasons. 



My requests are currently: **OPEN**


	2. Index

**Chpater 1:** Once There Were Dragons ( _Hiccup/Astrid_ )


	3. Once There Were Dragons

Category: Romantic Fluff; Hurt and Comfort

Characters: Hiccup, Astrid

The wind breezed over the cliffside, ruffling the emerald green carpet of grass. The wildflowers bobbed in the steady gale; as they writhed, the wind plucked away their loose petals to whisk them away into the wild blue yonder. As the soft little buds floated past Hiccup’s nose, he inhaled deep, flooding his nose with the honey-sweet scent of the pollen, dew, and earth lingering on their surfaces. Hiccup relished the aroma- the aroma of the _wilderness_. 

A heavy sigh fell past his lips as he eased himself into a sitting position. He was only twenty-two, but the cares of an entire village weighed heavy on a man. It felt like the toil and stress oozed down into his bones, gunking up his joints like oil and making them stiff and uncooperative. He rubbed at the scruffy hairs at the base of his neck. Despite the dull aching of his much too young body, he smiled wanly as the breeze tickled the little braids Astrid had tied into his wiry brown hair. Out in the cliffsides, staring into the great unknown, Hiccup could physically feel his worries and cares melting away. 

“Ahhh,” he exhaled contentedly and leaned back on his hands. He stretched his legs out in front of him, and the sole of his boot and metal foot hung barely over the edge of the bluff. The grass blades playfully brushed the leathers of his pants and his iron greaves, and the dandelions nearby deposited their fluffy seeds on his clothes. Beyond the cliffside, the ocean stretched on forever in endless glimmering sapphire. Above the horizon line, the pale blue sky expanded into the atmosphere; wispy white clouds blotted the vastness in long, thin sheets. Beyond the fluffy barrier, the sun tried its best to shine, pushing its warm yellow rays through the cottony surfaces to alight the earth. Hiccup smiled as he felt the streams wash over him, filling him with pleasant warmth. 

It wasn’t enough. Hiccup longed for _more_. Hiccup yearned for elder days, when he’d coasted among the clouds with water vapor exploding on his face as he dove down into them. He craved the heat of the burning sun, stretching his arms wide like Icarus to bask in the full brilliance of the bright rays as he climbed closer and closer to the bubbling yellow-white disc. He ached for the sensation of salt spray peppering his cheeks as he danced over thrashing waves and writhing white sea foam. He hungered for the touch of the wilds and the spirit of the unknown-

because once there were _dragons_ , and Hiccup missed them terribly. 

With a forlorn sigh, he flopped back into the carpet of green. Pollen spores and flower petals clouded the air in yellowy bursts with his movement to coast on the breeze. In the hazy wisps, Hiccup imagined the lumpy winged forms of dragons gliding on trade winds. They flapped their wings and occasionally dove down with gleeful growls. His lips curled upward in a wistful smile, and on reflex, he reached out. The pollen scattered at his touch, and the visions of the reptiles dissolved into nothingness. They existed only in his memory, not unlike his present reality. 

He groaned angrily and flopped his arm back against the ground- the ground which held him prisoner. No matter how much that Hiccup longed to fly, he no longer had wings to bear him. A few bitter tears prickled at the corners of his eyes as he gazed agonizedly up at the endless blue. 

“I miss you, bud,” he whispered to the wind. The breeze grasped the words and carried them away, bearing them across the wide, wide sea. Could Toothless hear them, he wondered? Hiccup liked to think so. He wondered if his best friend was perched on the slick rocks ringing the entrance to the Hidden World, contemplating the same sky and same sorrows. Hiccup closed his eyes and savored the feeling of the air swirling over his limbs and face. Momentarily, he could envision that he was astride Toothless’ broad, saddled back and sailing across the clouds. His heart ached, because a phantasm fell so, so short of the real thing. 

As Hiccup opened his eyes halfway to stare miserably at the world from which he was forever barred, the gentle shuffling of footsteps caught his attention. His eyes widened as he rolled his head to the side to see his very pregnant wife huffing and puffing as she tried to scale the steep path to the clifftop. Crying out, Hiccup rolled onto his belly and scrambling halfway through the grass on all fours before he managed to jump up and run to her. 

“Astrid! You shouldn’t exert yourself!” he scolded worryingly when he reached her. He immediately grabbed her elbow to steady her as her swollen body wobbled precariously. She used her free hand to sweep the straggling strands of her blonde bangs from her eyes and flashed him a gracious smile. 

“Thanks, honey,” she chirped and leaned in to peck him lightly on the cheek. They’d been together for years now, but even still, a bashful blush rose to paint Hiccup’s cheeks pink. With gentle nudges, he guided Astrid the rest of the way up the crudely carved steps until they reached the flat grasses of the clifftop. Astrid sighed contentedly and sunk in the center of the ridge to catch her breath. Hiccup squatted down beside her, lovingly combing his fingers through her pale blonde hair. “So, what’s on your mind?” 

Hiccup narrowed his eyes and flashed her a sardonic grin. 

“What makes you think anything is on my mind?” Astrid giggled as she tucked her legs under herself, leaning back at an angle so that her protruding belly didn’t unbalance her. With a crooning hum, she reached up to quickly tie a new braid into the threads of his long hair. As her fingertips glided through the wiry strands, she quipped matter-of-factly, “You only ever come up here when you have something on your mind.” Hiccup smiled wanly, caught red-handed, and flopped down beside her. 

“Ah, you caught me, you caught me,” he admitted with a small chuckle. Squinting, he cast his gaze back to the heavens. “When it all gets too much… I come up here and think about how things used to be.” Astrid hummed knowingly and began rubbing soothing circles into the small of his back. “It’s not that I regret what happened… It was what was best for all of us…” He sighed forlornly, imagining Toothless’ silhouette circling the fluffy cloud directly above them. “But, I still miss him, and I still miss being _up there_.” 

“I know,” Astrid cooed. She cuddled into him and nestled her head into the crook of his neck; Hiccup responded by resting his cheek against her scalp. “I know.” She reached out to link their hands and entwine their fingers, gripping him tight in reassurance. Her body was tense, and for a second, Hiccup began to feel guilty. 

“Astrid, I’m sorry. I probably sound so ungrateful-”

“No,” she interjected. Her free hand snapped up to cup his cheek, thumb lovingly tracing over the stubble beginning to line his jawline. “Don’t ever think that. I know that there’s a hole in your heart that I can never fill, and I don’t resent that,” she told him firmly. She smiled lovingly and pressed a lingering kiss to the joint of his jaw. “I _know_ that you’ll miss him forever, and that’s _okay_.” She caressed his cheek with endearing touches as she squeezed his hand tightly again. “Every once in a while, it’s all right to let your head wander up into the clouds.” 

He hummed thoughtfully, for his mind had already drifted heavenward once more. He relived it for a while, the time where there were dragons, before he finally fell back down to earth. Astrid was now reclined against him, snoozing peacefully in the warm summer afternoon. Smiling, Hiccup pressed a kiss to her temple and rubbed the belly swollen with their first child. She exhaled with a hum, and fluttered her eyes open to peer sleepily at him. “What’s on your mind now?” she asked blearily as she stretched against him. Hiccup chuckled and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. 

“Oh, you know, just how amazing I am and whatnot,” he started sarcastically, making Astrid giggle and slap him playfully in the cheek. Hiccup snickered and buried his nose into her hair, inhaling her scent like honeysuckle and fresh bread. “Kidding… I was thinking of how amazing _you_ are,” he corrected. “You’re always here waiting for me when I come down from the sky,” he purred lovingly. Astrid laughed mirthfully and nuzzled further into him. 

“Of course, love. Always.” 

Hiccup wrapped his arms around his wife and held her close. He looked over the cliffside and out into the wide sea. Somewhere beyond the horizon, dragons roamed, free forever from pain and torment to flit playfully through white cotton-candy clouds and splashing waves. Once there were dragons in Hiccup’s world, but they were no longer there to carry him across the wind and into the sky. But, that was okay, because Hiccup had plenty there for him on the ground, too.


End file.
